New store and restaurant openings delayed at UP Mall

September 19, 2007|By DUSTIN GROVE WSBT-TV Reporter

MISHAWAKA Â? Shoppers will have to wait longer to shop University Park Mall's newest stores and restaurants. Seven months after tearing down the old Marshall Field's store, developers are building a new outdoor shopping village. But things are moving slower than expected.

The new open-air village of shops and restaurants was originally supposed to be finished and open this fall. But Wednesday, a mall spokesman said it'll be sometime after June 2008.

Â?Leasing is part of that, and construction delays are part of that,Â? said Les Morris, a spokesperson for Simon Properties which owns UP Mall.

That means shoppers will have to battle construction through the holiday shopping season.

"It took out a lot of parking, too, so holiday shopping's probably going to be worse than it is usually,Â? said shopper Amanda Quinn.

Mall officials say they're working on minimizing the traffic congestion this winter.